RF antenna arrangement configured to be a part of a lid to an apparatus

ABSTRACT

An RF antenna arrangement has the same or slightly larger footprint as the RF shield for radio chips on a printed circuit board. The apparatus includes a printed circuit board, a digital processor, a radio chip(s), a radio frequency shield, a lid, and an RF antenna arrangement(s). The lid has the same or slightly larger footprint as the RF shield, which enables the lid to fit on the RF shield. The RF antenna is formed as an integral part of the lid. The apparatus also includes an RF transmission coaxial cable(s) having a first end physically and electrically connected to the RF antenna arrangement(s) and the surface of the lid, and a second end electrically coupled to an RF connector. By forming the antenna arrangement(s) from the lid, this invention solves the space constraint problems of antenna placements for wireless device applications. Additionally, this invention is cost-effective and simple to manufacture.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

Embodiments of the subject matter described herein relate generally toradio frequency (RF) devices and RF communication. More particularly,embodiments of the subject matter relate to a transceiver board, whichincludes an RF antenna arrangement configured to be a part of a lid.

Description of the Related Art

The prior art is replete with systems, devices, and components thatsupport wireless data communication in one form or another. For example,most (if not all) portable computer-based devices (laptop computers,tablet computers, smartphones, and video game platforms) supportwireless communication in accordance with the Wi-Fi communicationprotocol, the Bluetooth communication protocol, cellular communicationprotocols, and the like. Moreover, many consumer products and appliancesare also being offered with native wireless data communicationcapabilities. For example, television equipment, DVD players, audioequipment, and video services receivers (set top boxes) may be providedwith native Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth communication features. Each of thesewireless devices may transmit at different frequencies and using adifferent protocol. It is beneficial to have an antenna system that isable to operate at many different frequencies and fit in a small space.Such wireless data communication requires data transmission inaccordance with a specific data communication protocol, a radiofrequency (RF) transceiver, and a suitable antenna structure configuredto transmit and receive signals.

It can be challenging to design and implement an efficient antennaassembly that will operate for all the expected frequencies. In someinstances, many antennas might be used, but each antenna takes up space.It may be difficult to deploy and position an RF antenna assembly incompact form for different applications where space is limited orotherwise restricted.

Accordingly, it is desirable to have a compact, efficient, and effectiveRF antenna structure that can receive many different frequencies that issuitable for use with host device, such as a video services receiver, anappliance, or the like. Furthermore, other desirable features andcharacteristics of the present invention will become apparent from thesubsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technicalfield and background.

BRIEF SUMMARY

An exemplary embodiment of an apparatus includes a printed circuitboard, a chip, a radio frequency shield, a lid and an RF antennaarrangement. The RF antenna arrangement is configured to be a part ofthe lid. The apparatus also includes an RF transmission cable having afirst end physically and electrically connected to the RF antennaarrangement and the surface of the lid, and having a second endelectrically coupled to a RF connector.

Another exemplary embodiment of an apparatus is provided here. Theapparatus includes a printed circuit board, a digital processor, aplurality of chips, a radio frequency shield, a lid, and a plurality ofRF antenna arrangements. The lid has the same footprint as the radiofrequency shield, which enable the lid to fit the radio frequencyshield. The apparatus also includes an RF transmission cable having afirst end physically and electrically connected to the RF antennaarrangement and the surface of the lid, and having a second endelectrically coupled to a RF connector.

By forming the antenna arrangement from the lid, this invention solvesthe space constraint problems of antenna placements for wireless deviceapplications. Additionally, this invention is cost-effective and simpleto manufacture.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of the subject matter may be derived byreferring to the detailed description and claims when considered inconjunction with the following figures, wherein like reference numbersrefer to similar elements throughout the figures.

FIG. 1 is a front isometric view of a set-top box including atransceiver board with an antenna assembly according to one embodimentof the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the antenna assembly on the transceiverboard according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 3A-3C are top isometric views of the process of forming the RFantenna assembly according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of the RF antenna assembly according to oneembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the shield, antenna assembly andtransceiver board according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 6A-6B are isometric views of processes of forming an RF antennaassembly according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is an exploded view of an antenna assembly on the transceiverboard according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 is an isometric view of a transceiver board according to anotherembodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, certain specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of various disclosedembodiments. However, one skilled in the relevant art will recognizethat embodiments may be practiced without one or more of these specificdetails, or with other methods, components, materials, etc. In otherinstances, well-known structures associated with a set-top box, a motherboard or a transceiver board have not been shown or described in detailto avoid unnecessarily obscuring descriptions of the embodiments.

In FIG. 1, a set-top box 100 is shown. In the set-top box 100, a motherboard 120 and a transceiver board 122 are installed. An input/output(e.g. USB) cable 180 connects the mother board 120 with the transceiverboard 122. It should be understood that the set-top box 100 will includeadditional components, features, devices, hardware, DVD player, harddrive to store video data, software, and processing logic that cooperateto provide the desired video services functionality. Thus, although notshown in FIG. 1, the set-top box 100 may also include, withoutlimitation: one or more printed circuit boards, power supply or powerregulation components, electronic components and devices, memoryelements, a hard disk, one or more processor chips, and the like. Theseand other conventional aspects of the set-top box 100 will not bedescribed in detail here. The RF transmission cable 124 has anappropriate length that allows it to span the distance between thetransceiver board 122 and the mother board 120.

In FIG. 2, the details of the transceiver board 122 are shown. Thetransceiver board 122 comprises a printed circuit board 126, a radiofrequency shield 128 and a lid 130. The lid 130 might include severalholes 138 to permit cooling airflow, insert tabs 140 and a RF antennaarrangement 132, which includes of a first section (e.g. groundedterminal element) 134, a second section (e.g. antenna feed) 135, a thirdsection (e.g., 2.4 GHz band antenna element) 136, a fourth section (e.g.resonating element for both 2.4/5 GHz bands) 137 and a fifth section(e.g. 5 GHz band antenna element) 139. The RF transmission cable 124 hastwo terminals, a signal terminal 141 that is soldered directly to thesecond section 135 of the RF antenna arrangement 132 and a groundterminal 143 that is soldered directly to the surface 131 of the lid130.

The transceiver board 122 supports wireless data communication functionsof the set-top box 100. The transceiver board 122 is configured toreceive, transmit, and process data in accordance with one or morewireless communication protocols and frequencies. In this regard, the RFantenna arrangement 132 may be compatible with one or more of thefollowing wireless data communication protocols, without limitation:IEEE 802.11 (any variant), also known as Wi-Fi; the Bluetooth wirelessprotocol; and IEEE 802.15, also known as ZigBee. Consequently, thetransceiver board 122 supports RF signals having frequencies in thebands that are specified by these wireless communication protocols. Incertain embodiments, therefore, the RF antenna arrangement 132 canhandle signals in the 2.4 GHz band, the 5.0 GHz band, or dual bands(with the corresponding frequency channels) as specified by the IEEE802.11, IEEE 802.15, and Bluetooth specifications. In this regard, theRF antenna arrangement 132 is designed, fabricated, and tuned foroperation at the desired frequency bands and channels. The antennaarrangement 132 can be any acceptable antenna that can receive one ormore of these frequencies. In FIGS. 2-5, a type of inverted F antenna isshown, while in FIGS. 6A-8, the antenna shown is a dipole 5 GHz antenna.The inverted F, H, inverted H, MIFA, inverted L, folded inverted L,double L, comb, and others are well known styles of antenna shapes forthese types of applications and any antenna that works with the variouswireless protocols is acceptable.

The transceiver board 122 supports wireless data communication functionsof the set-top box 100, such as short-range peer-to-peer wirelesscommunication, wireless local area network communication, Internetconnectivity, or the like. The data received/transmitted by thetransceiver board 122 can be routed by, processed by, or otherwisehandled by one or more other components, processing modules, or devicesof the set-top box 100.

The RF transmission cable 124 (which may be realized as an RF coaxialcable in some embodiments) has a first end 125 with two terminals, asignal terminal 141 and a ground terminal 143. A second end 178 of theRF transmission cable 124 may include a compatible connector that isconfigured to mate with an RF connector 177 on the transceiver board122, as shown in FIG. 2. Alternatively, the first end 125 may beotherwise designed to mate with the RF antenna arrangement 132 by way ofa solder connection, a press-fit coupling, or the like. As onenon-limiting example, the RF connector may be a miniature coaxialconnector such as a “Hirose U.FL” connector, sometimes also referred toas ufl connector. A similar type of connection could be utilized tophysically and electrically couple the RF transmission cable 124 to thetransceiver board 122.

Referring now to FIGS. 3A, 3B and 3C, the processes of forming theantenna arrangement 132 are shown. The lid 130 starts as a flat sheet.It is usually in the form of a large flat sheet from which several, evenseveral hundred antennas can be stamped in a single press. The largeflat sheet is stamped to form a single flat sheet antenna, as shown inFIG. 3A. Each antennas lid 130 is also stamped out to permit forming ofeach of the antenna arrangement sections, such as the first section 134,the second section 135, etc., the several holes 138 and the insert tabs140, as shown in FIG. 3A. Dotted lines 145, 170 and 171 show where thesheet is to be later bent to form the antenna structure. The firstsection 134 can be bent to extend vertically from the surface 131 of thelid 130 along the dotted line 170 and the tabs 140 can be bent to extendvertically from the surface 131 of the lid 130 along the dotted lines145 in a vertical direction opposite of the first section 134 as shownin FIG. 3B. The third section 136 and fourth section 137 are bent toextend horizontal and thus parallel with the surface 131 of the lid 130along the dotted line 171, as shown in FIG. 3C. The third section 136and the fourth section 137 are thus perpendicular to the first section134 and the second section 135. In some embodiments, the third section136 is bent at a downward angle towards the lid 130, such as at a 10degree angle.

As best seen in FIG. 3B, the second section 135 is physically separatefrom the lid surface 131. The open space between the lid surface 131 andthe second section 135 permits that section to be a preferred locationfor the antenna signal to be picked up on the signal terminal 141 of theRF transmission cable 124, as illustrated in FIG. 2. The lid 130 isformed from an electrically conductive material such as, withoutlimitation, stainless steel, copper, aluminum, alloys thereof, or thelike. As is well-understood by those familiar with RF antenna design,the RF antenna arrangement 132 is tuned primarily by adjusting orselecting its length, i.e., the length of its major longitudinal path. Alonger path of the third section 136 results in a lower resonantfrequency, and a shorter path of the fifth section 139 results in ahigher resonant frequency. The first section 134 extends vertically to aselected height to create an appropriate distance that allows thesecond, third, fourth and other sections to function as an antenna. Ofcourse, the second section 135 can have a contact with the first end 125of the RF transmission cable 124 by way any known connection, such as asolder connection, a press-fit coupling, or the like. The other sections135, 136, etc. work as an antenna and may be compatible with one or moreof the following wireless data communication protocols, withoutlimitation: IEEE 802.11 (any variant), also known as Wi-Fi; theBluetooth wireless protocol; and IEEE 802.15, also known as ZigBee.

In FIG. 4, the lid 130 is shown having the flat surface 131, finalantenna arrangement 132, the tabs 140 and other structures as describedherein. The RF transmission cable 124 is electrically connected, such asby being soldered to the RF antenna arrangement 132 and grounded to thesurface 131 of the lid 130.

In FIG. 5, an exploded view of the transceiver board 122 assembly isshown. An RF chip 142 is mounted on the printed circuit board 126. TheRF chip 142 is an integrated circuit, semiconductor chip that is mountedon the printed circuit board. This chip 142 has radio frequencycommunication circuits formed thereon. The circuits in the chip 142 areof the type that can process a Bluetooth signal, Wi-Fi, Zigbee or othertype of RF signal. A radio frequency shield 128 is mounted on theprinted circuit board 126 to overlay and encase the chip 142. Since thechip 142 must process specific RF signals, it is preferred to shield itfrom other types of electromagnetic waves, RF interference, and othernoise. For example, electromagnetic waves of the type that might beemitted by a LTE cell phone, USB 2.0/3.0, DDR SDRAM or other types ofelectromagnetic radiation. The shield 128 includes a surface 176 that insome embodiments, is a solid piece of metal, while in other embodimentsit might have holes 129 to permit heat transfer, while in otherembodiments it may have large apertures. The shield 128 also includesflaps 175 that are folded from the surface 176 to be perpendicular tothe surface 176, similar to the tabs 140 on the lid 130.

The shield 128 may be physically connected to the printed circuit board126 via a solder paste region illustrated by dotted lines 174. Thesolder paste region 174 may be arranged to permit the flaps 175 of theshield 128 to contact and connect to the printed circuit board 126.

The shield 128 is grounded to block all stray radio wave signals fromthe chip 142. The ground connection of the lid 130, which forms theground of antenna arrangement 132 is physically and electrical connectedto the shield 128. The two metal sheets for the shield 128 and the lid130 directly abut each other and thus form a solid physical andelectrical connection. These are also connected to the ground of theprinted circuit board 126.

The lid 130 overlays directly on the radio frequency shield 128. Thisarrangement permits the combination of the chip 142, the shield 128 andthe antenna arrangement 132 to share a common area and have the samefootprint. Space is often limited in the front section of the set topbox 100. The embodiments as described herein permit the same surfacearea on the transceiver board 122 to be used by three components. Theshield 128 is shown as somewhat bigger than the chip 142 to shieldexternal RF components of the chip 142 not illustrated in FIG. 5, but itcan have other dimensions, it can have about the same footprint area. Afootprint for the shield and antenna combination might be in the rangeof 5 cm by 3 cm, 7 cm by 4 cm or the like.

One embodiment of overlaying the lid 130 and the shield 128 isillustrated in FIG. 5. The flaps 175 of the shield 128 include holes172, while the tabs 140 of the lid 130 include dimples 173 to engage theholes 172 in the shield 128. The dimples 173 may be pressed into the lid130 before, after, or at the time the lid 130 is stamped, as discussedabove in conjunction with FIG. 3A. When the lid 130 is arranged to abutthe shield 128, the dimples 173 in the lid 130 engage the holes 172 inthe shield 128 to secure the lid 130 to the shield 128.

The chip 142 cooperates with the RF antenna arrangement 132 to supportwireless data communication functions of the set-top box 100. A user cantherefore use their wireless remote control, cell phone, a home computerWi-Fi, or other device to communicate directly with the set-top box. Theshield 128 protects radio chips on the printed circuit board 126 fromunrelated frequencies that might interfere with the chips. In oneembodiment as shown in FIG. 5, the shield 128 allows the chip 142 tofunction as an antenna efficiently by shielding from noise and otherunrelated many frequencies.

In FIGS. 6A and 6B, a lid 144 is shown as another embodiment of thepresent disclosure. In this embodiment, the lid 144 includes a pluralityof RF antenna arrangements. The lid 144 is stamped out to form RFantenna arrangements 146 of the vertical double L type 5 GHz dipoleantennas and tab sections 148, as shown in FIG. 6A. The RF antennaarrangements 146 extend from the surface of the lid 144, as shown inFIG. 6B. The RF antenna arrangements 146 and the tab sections 148 can bebent vertically from the surface of the lid along with the dotted lineas shown in FIG. 6B. Each of RF transmission cables 150 is soldered toone of the RF antenna arrangements 146. The signal terminal of the cable150 is soldered to the antenna lead pickup “feed” of each antennaarrangements 146 and the ground braid of cable 150 is soldered to thegrounded surface element of antenna arrangements 146. The other end ofcable 150 connects one of the RF antenna arrangements 146 to theappropriate radio chip, (not shown in FIG. 6B). The middle RF antennaarrangement 146 is rotated 90 degrees (orthogonal to the side antennas)as shown in FIG. 6B for isolation between the antennas. A number offeatures, functions, and characteristics of the lid 144 and the RFantenna arrangement 146 are similar or identical to those describedabove with reference to FIGS. 1-5. For the sake of brevity and clarity,such common subject matter will not be redundantly described here in thecontext of FIGS. 6A-6B.

In FIG. 7, an exploded view of a transceiver board 160 is shown asanother embodiment of the present disclosure. A plurality of RF chips158, such as Wi-Fi chips, and a digital processor 156 are mounted on theprinted circuit board 154. The radio frequency shield 152 is mounted onthe printed circuit board 154 and above the chips 158. This shield 152is an embodiment of shield 128 and has many of the same features andcharacteristics. In some other embodiments, the shield 152 is of a typethat has additional apertures, not illustrated, that permit a greatairflow for cooling of the plurality of chips. The lid 144 is positioneddirectly on the radio frequency shield 152, such that shield 152 hasslightly smaller footprint than lid 144. The digital processor 156cooperates with a plurality of the chips 158 and the RF antennaarrangement 146 to support wireless data communication functions of theset-top box 100. In this embodiment, the transceiver board 160 isconfigured to handle a plurality of frequencies with a plurality of theantenna arrangement 146 at the same time. A number of features,functions, and characteristics of the transceiver board 160, the shield152 and the RF antenna arrangement 146 are similar or identical to thosedescribed above with reference to FIGS. 1-5. For the sake of brevity andclarity, such common subject matter will not be redundantly describedhere in the context of FIG. 7.

In FIG. 8, the transceiver board 160 is shown as another embodiment ofthe present disclosure. The transceiver board 160 comprises the printedcircuit board 154, the digital processor 156, the radio frequency shield152 and the lid 144. The lid 144 includes the tab sections 148 and theRF antenna arrangements 146. Each of RF transmission cables 150 issoldered to one of the RF antenna arrangements 146 and the surface ofthe lid 144 and connects one of the RF antenna arrangements 146 and thesurface of the lid 144 to a RF connector (not shown in FIG. 8). A numberof features, functions, and characteristics of the lid 144 and the RFantenna arrangement 146 are similar or identical to those describedabove with reference to FIGS. 1-5. For the sake of brevity and clarity,such common subject matter will not be redundantly described here in thecontext of FIG. 8.

The various embodiments described above can be combined to providefurther embodiments. In general, in the following claims, the terms usedshould not be construed to limit the claims to the specific embodimentsdisclosed in the specification and the claims, but should be construedto include all possible embodiments along with the full scope ofequivalents to which such claims are entitled. Accordingly, the claimsare not limited by the disclosure.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An apparatus comprising: a printed circuitboard having a first surface; an integrated chip mounted on the firstsurface and including radio frequency (RF) communication circuitry; anRF shield coupled to the first surface, the RF shield directly overlyingand encasing the integrated chip; a lid attached to and directlyoverlying the RF shield, the lid including a second surface and a firstRF antenna on the second surface, the lid having a footprint that isgreater than or equal to a footprint of the RF shield on the firstsurface; an RF transmission coaxial cable having an end portionphysically and electrically connected to the first RF antenna; andwherein the RF shield includes two or more first flaps coupled to thefirst surface, and the lid includes two or more second flaps engagedwith the two or more first flaps and securely connecting the lid to theRF shield.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first RF antennaincludes: a first section extending upwardly from the second surface,and a second section coupled to the first section and spaced apart fromthe second surface, the end portion of the RF transmission coaxial cabledirectly coupled to at least one of the first section and the secondsection.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the second sectionincludes a first RF antenna element sized and shaped for communicationat a first RF frequency and includes a second RF antenna element sizedand shaped for communication at a second RF frequency different than thefirst RF frequency.
 4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the end portionincludes a first terminal directly coupled to the first section and asecond terminal directly coupled to the second section.
 5. The apparatusof claim 1, wherein the lid includes a flat sheet and the first RFantenna is stamped out from the flat sheet in an antenna shape.
 6. Theapparatus of claim 1, wherein the RF shield or the lid is directlycoupled to a ground of the printed circuit board on the first surface.7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein two or more surfaces of the lid arein direct contact with two or more surfaces of the RF shield.
 8. Theapparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a second RF antenna extendingfrom the second surface and spaced apart from the first RF antenna onthe second surface.
 9. An apparatus, comprising: a printed circuit boardhaving a surface; an integrated chip mounted on the surface, theintegrated chip including radio frequency (RF) communication circuitry;an RF shield directly coupled to the printed circuit board and encasingthe integrated chip; a lid coupled to the RF shield and including anupper portion and a first RF antenna with a first section and a secondsection, the first section including one or more RF receiving elementsand the second section extending from the upper portion; an RFtransmission coaxial cable having an end portion physically andelectrically connected to the first RF antenna; and wherein the lidincludes a second RF antenna having a third section with one or more RFreceiving elements and a fourth section extending from the upper portionof the lid.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the lid includes afirst side portion extending downwardly from a first side of the upperportion and a second side portion extending downwardly from a secondside of the upper portion opposite to the first side, the first sideportion and the second side portion engaged with the RF shield.
 11. Theapparatus of claim 9, the lid having a footprint that is greater than orequal to a footprint of the RF shield on the surface, and the footprintof the lid being smaller than or equal to an area of the surface.